I’m in!
Dear Rachael,
Congratulations! You have been selected to participate as an Attractions Cast Member on the Disney College Program in the Spring 2010 Season.
YAYYYY!!!!!! I had quite the party jumping around my room in excitement when I read that in my email. Actually I was really surprised to find an acceptance because the title of the email was Thank You for Interviewing, just like the last one. I figured they wouldn’t send me two thank you’s so this one had to be a yes or a no. And it was a yes!!
Now this blog post has been a bit delayed because I’ve been busy slash lazy. I was actually accepted last Thursday (today’s Sunday). For those of you keeping track at home, here’s the breakdown of my application process:
Thursday August 20 – ePresentation, Online Application, and web-based interview
Friday August 21 – Scheduled phone interview
Tuesday August 25 – Phone interview at 11:15 AM. Was told I’d hear back in 2-3 weeks.
Tuesday September 1 – ‘Thank You for Interviewing’ Email. Was told I’d hear back in 4-6 weeks.
Thursday September 3 – Acceptance! Spring 2010 Attractions!
I haven’t accepted my invitation yet (I have until September 19 to do so) because my parents have proved to be a sticking point. See, originally I was supposed to be studying abroad at the University College London for the spring semester. This has been my plan for a long time, but I just think Disney is a better fit. My parents do not agree. And I can definitely see their point. But the thing is, is that London is ridiculously expensive, both to pay for the program and live in the city (and American money isn’t doing so hot overseas), and also I wouldn’t be taking classes in my major. I’m an Anthropology major, but I’ve been accepting into UCL’s Anatomy department. This means the classes only count towards getting me prepared for med school. Which is fine, except that I don’t know that I could get any transfer credit for them because they don’t really fit with any classes my school offers. I think it’s also a comfort thing – Disney seems much safer than going to London for 6 months by myself. But I’m not settling, and I’m not doing this because I’m scared. I could LIVE in London for the rest of my life if I so choose, but I’m never going to get the chance to do Disney ever again. And don’t say that I could vacation there, because that’s not the same thing at all. I want to MAKE the magic for all the millions of people that go to Disney every year, not just experience it.
My dad asked me, what could I get out of Disney that I couldn’t get out of London? I didn’t have a good answer for him at the time, only that he couldn’t compare the experiences at all. But what I meant to say is that being a CP at Disney will teach me hard work, responsibility for myself and others, and will give me invaluable experience in working with people, all qualities necessary for being a doctor. And it will be fun!
And I’m certainly not giving up on studying abroad. Just not during this spring. I’ve got a full ride scholarship to my school and since the funds won’t be used in the spring I plan on using them towards a study abroad program during the summer, preferably one focused on anthropology. I’ve got my eye on two: the Malta Summer Field School, and the Mediterranean Center for Arts and Sciences. I still have to talk to my department head and see what sort of credit he can offer me for either of these, but they both seem like excellent programs where I’ll gain experience in my field.
So this isn’t set in stone just yet. I still need to get my OK from the parents and hammer out some credit details – hopefully I can get anthropology internship credit or something from the CP because Disney and anthropology are both all about people, right? And I need to figure out my summer plans for going abroad, but that doesn’t have to be completely figured out for awhile. Hopefully I can accept my invite soon – I plan on choosing the January 6 arrival date. Attractions Spring 2010 – here I come!
